Phillips 1

Lucille Phillips

Mary B. Van Ness

English – 1060

Essay 1 – Claim of Fact

24 September 2009

Obesity in Children

Obesity of children has become a number one Public Health problem in the world and

placing that our children has a shorter life span than their parents. It has placed a very negative

impact on our children in school with their performance; it has affected their physical life skills

also the perception that our society has about them. Many factors are used to determine if

children are overweight, such as their individual's age, gender, and height. Obesity occurs when

an individual has an increased amount of body fat which the medical field uses the BMI (Body

Mass Index) to determine this. It is usually defined as being 20-30% above the normal body

weight for someone of the same age, gender, and height. Morbid obesity is usually defined as

being 50-100% above the normal body weight for someone of the same age, gender, and height.

According to George Morrison (2007) obesity is prevalent in both developed and

developing countries, reflecting changes in behavioral patterns, such as decreased physical

activity and overconsumption of high-fat, energy-dense foods. It’s reported that children spend

more time watching television and fast food consumption is having a big influence on them and

they became less involved in doing any physical activities outdoors which helped to lead to

children being obese. You & Nayga (2005) supported other studies showing the association of

television and video games made children more lazy but they were consuming more fast food

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because of working families and easier preparations (Child-Youth & 1997 national Longitude

survey). (Hung-Hao & Rodolfo, 2009)

In the article “Top Kids Meals Unhealthy, Report says” dishes geared for children have

remained relatively unchanged in restaurants for four years according to a recent study of kids

menus (Luna, 2009). The top menus for children are hot-dogs, grilled cheese sandwiches and

chicken fingers, and it is still a concern that restaurants have their work cut out for themselves in

order to come up with a healthier menu, plus having children want to purchase those meals was

Also the need to come up with what was the effects of fast-food restaurant advertising and how

they are targeting the children by encouraging and the children forces parents to take them to

purchase fast food which cost less and is easier on the working and poor families, but the effects

it has on childhood obesity. While evidence from the fields of public health and nutrition has

shown that hour of TV viewing and fast-food consumption are two crucial factors that determine

child obesity. Watching television decreases physical activities.

According to Dr. Oz’s out of 2/3 adults are obese and above 30% children are overweight

or obese, because of lack of exercising and we have become the fast food generation.

(Health.com, Sept. 2009, pg 12). In the Journal of Human Resources they conducted a study

using the school cafeteria showing that the students who eat bought school-provided lunches

some were more likely to be overweight than those peers who bring a brown-bag lunch every

day.

Amana Green stated on August 17 that almost a quarter of North Carolina youngest

children aren’t eating a balance diet (Star News, Wilmington, NC 2009, pg 1). Poor diets could

one of the causes towards serious health problems within our children. Children’s Health Watch,

a Boston-based nonpartisan pediatric research network, says that chronic malnutrition in children

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can slow brain development in the crucial growth stages before age 3. Also poor nutrition can

affect school readiness for the preschool years and academic performance through high school.

Another reason for children to be inactive is because of their neighborhoods they’re

living in that they are unsafe, so the children have to stay inside not be active. In the article

“Growing by the Pounds”, states that billions of dollars are being spent every year on medical

treatments because of the children obesity problems. Americans also face serious physical and

emotional health issues; also the list of obesity-related consequences is long and not pretty:

hypertension, heart disease, asthma, sleep apnea, type 2 diabetes and premature death (Biegel,

2009). The question was brought up in the article by Ron Barnett, should criminal charges be

brought up against the parents of the children who have become dangerously overweight?

(Barnett 2009) Parents don’t realize the damage they are doing to their children by them being

obese at a very young age and the courts don’t know what pursuit they want to take because a lot

of times the effects don’t show until the child becomes an adult. The courts don’t want to open

up something that they can’t handle because it would cause more on Department of Social

Services and the overload the of case studies they already have.

Some facts on the percentage of overweight children’s are:

• Ages 2 to 5 years old – 17.4%

• Ages 6 to 11 years old – 32.6%

• Ages 12 to 15 years old – 39.6%

• Ages 16 to 19 years old – 51.6%

Source: Barnett, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, USA Today, 2009

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Obesity in children is affecting every child in every race and country according the study

in the National Center for Education Statistics. It’s not just one particular gender or race, but it

has shown that in American Indian they have 31.2% obesity among their preschool age. This has

become almost an epidemic cause of the weight problems which is causing other health issues

also and that is so widespread that it’s killing our children. According to the Department of

Health, children are becoming dangerously overweight but their parents shouldn’t call them

overweight or obese because of the stigmatism that society has placed already on them. Parents

are oblivious to the facts of what is happening to their children by them allowing them to remain

inactivity’s by spending more time viewing television, playing on video games, and snacking

and eating unhealthy. Being obese has caused a lot of negative effects personally on their body

and has cause health issues, given some children poor self perceptions, poor life skills and/or

school performance.

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Work Cited

Barnett, Ron. “Is Child Obesity Child Abuse?” USA Today. 1-4. Kids Search. Web. 21 July

2009. AN: #JOE 233704043709.

Bregel, Emily. “ Growing by the Pound.” Chattanooga Times/Free Press. 1-5. Kids Search. Web.

13 September 2009. AN: #2W63454664866.

Chang, Hung-Hoa and Nayja, Jr, Rodolfo. “Television Viewing, Fast-Food Consumption, and

Children’s Obesity.” 293-307. Academic Search Premier. Web. 16 Apr. 2009 AN:

#43282033.

Dhoble, Abhijeet , Kamakshi, Odoms-Young, Angela and Patel,. “Familial and Behavioral

Determinants of Obesity in Black Children, And Preventive Strategies.” 6-6. Academic

Search Premier. Web. 2008. AN: #34291580.

Fritz, Steiner. “We Knew It All Along.” American Planning Association. Academic Search

Premier. Web. July 2009.

Greene, Amanda. “Hungry Eyes – Poor Diet Leaves Kids Vulnerable to Health Learning

Problem.” Star-News (Wilmingon, NC). 1-3. Kids Search. Web. 17 Aug. 2009. AN:

#2W6958830409.

Hunes, Ellen. “Secrets to a healthier family.” Health.com. 12. Academic Search Premier. Web.

September 2009.

Luna, Nancy. “Top Kids Meals Unhealthy, Report Say.” 1. Orange County Register. Kids

Search. August 28, 2009.

AN: 2W63684907464.

Morrison, George. “Early Childhood Education Today.” P. 41. Pearson Education, Inc. 2007

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Viadero, Debra. “Childhood Obesity.” 5-5. Academic Search Complete. Web. 15 July 2009.

AN: #43426897.